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Not Just Hot Air: First Footage of A Valley Without Wind 2

While initially arresting, I eventually found A Valley Without Wind to be oddly comforting in its mishmash of eras, environments, and graphical styles. Still, there's one thing you can't argue with -- in its over-ambition, the gameplay became kind of murky, restricting players from pulling their platforming feet from the mud and actually getting anywhere. But with this new footage of A Valley Without Wind 2, narrated by developer and Arcen Games founder Chris Park, we're shown a new Valley that's a lot more refined in scope, with a much greater emphasis on storytelling.

The video's been thrown up onto Park's blog, alongside several screenshots and a lengthy description of the kinds of changes we'll be seeing. For one thing, there's a much greater focus on storytelling, and that impersonal permadeath mechanic has been done away with -- this time around we'll be playing (and hopefully developing a connection with) the same character throughout the entire thing. The rather extensive gameplay of the original's been reined in for a much clearer focus on its platforming roots. And yes, that polarizing aesthetic style is also getting a revamp.

While we previously reported that A Valley Without Wind 2 would be free to those who already owned the original, we now have confirmation that it goes the other way, too -- if you buy AVWW2, you'll also get the first game free. And if that wasn't neat enough, AVWW2's team is hoping to head into open beta "early next week," meaning that we could be playing this very, very soon.

Owners of AVWW are granted instant beta access, as are those who pre-order AVWW2. Here's to hoping the sequel truly elevates A Valley Without Wind to the game it could've been, so that we're no longer platforming endlessly in a quirky, empty world.